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Fadnavis Mocks Thackerays After Mumbai Protest Over Electoral Rolls
Uddhav and Raj Thackeray led a protest march in Mumbai on October 4.
They objected to a voter-list review called the Special Intensive Revision, or SIR.
They also wanted Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar removed.
Raj Thackeray called for elections to use paper ballots instead of electronic voting machines.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis criticized the march and said it was an effort to regain political support.
He pointed out that Maharashtra’s elections were in 2024, Gyanesh Kumar became chief election commissioner in 2025, and the SIR began in 2026.
The opposition says the voter-list exercise could leave eligible voters off the rolls.
The Election Commission says the exercise updates voter lists and allows people to make claims and objections.
Police filed a case against the march organisers, saying permission was not obtained and prohibitory orders were violated.
Uddhav and Raj Thackeray led the October 4 Virat Garjana Morcha in south Mumbai.
The march called for Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s removal and Maharashtra’s SIR to be scrapped.
Raj Thackeray also called for elections to use ballot papers instead of electronic voting machines.
Devendra Fadnavis said the protest reflected political frustration and mocked the Thackerays as “Ghajinis.”
Mumbai Police filed an FIR against march organisers, alleging a lack of required permission and violation of prohibitory orders.
- Who
- Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray led the march; Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis criticized it.
- What
- A protest demanded Gyanesh Kumar’s removal and the scrapping of Maharashtra’s Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
- Where
- South Mumbai, with the march ending near Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation headquarters.
- When
- October 4, 2026; Fadnavis’s remarks were reported on October 5, 2026.
- Why
- The organisers opposed the SIR and questioned the Election Commission; Fadnavis said the protest was an attempt to regain lost political ground.
Opposition and Thackerays
Fadnavis and Election Commission
Special Intensive Revision
Opposition and Thackerays
The opposition alleged the SIR could exclude legitimate voters and demanded that it be scrapped in Maharashtra.
Fadnavis and Election Commission
The Election Commission said SIR is intended to update and clean electoral rolls and includes mechanisms for claims and objections.
Election-related allegations
Opposition and Thackerays
The Thackerays questioned the functioning of the poll panel and framed the issue as a fight over voting rights and democratic institutions.
Fadnavis and Election Commission
Fadnavis argued that the chronology undermined allegations about the 2024 Maharashtra elections: Gyanesh Kumar took office in 2025 and SIR began in 2026.
Purpose of the march
Opposition and Thackerays
The Thackerays presented the march as opposition to the SIR and a defence of voting rights; Raj Thackeray also sought a return to ballot papers.
Fadnavis and Election Commission
Fadnavis described the march as an effort to recover lost political ground after electoral setbacks and said attendance was thin.
Key facts
- Protest name
- Virat Garjana Morcha
- Protest date
- October 4, 2026
- Main demands
- Remove Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and scrap Maharashtra’s SIR
- Other demand
- Raj Thackeray called for elections to use ballot papers instead of electronic voting machines.
- Relevant chronology cited by Fadnavis
- Maharashtra elections were held in 2024; Gyanesh Kumar became chief election commissioner in 2025; SIR began in 2026.
- Police action
- Mumbai Police registered an FIR against the march organisers at Azad Maidan police station.
- Police allegation
- The march lacked required police permission and violated prohibitory orders in South Mumbai.
Quotes
Devendra Fadnavis
Maharashtra chief minister commenting on the Thackerays’ protest march.
“They have become like ‘Ghajini’. So I want to remind these ‘Ghajinis’ that Gyanesh Kumar became Chief Election Commissioner in 2025, whereas elections in Maharashtra were held in 2024, and the SIR began in 2026.”
news18.com
“The morcha was an attempt to find back their lost ground. Despite all the hype, the attendance at the march was thin.”
news18.com
Sources
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